UN Chronicle

The UN Chronicle is a must-read for every concerned world citizen. Produced by the United Nations Department of Public Information, this quarterly journal is your connection to the major political and social issues happening around the world today. In each issue, you'll read about international developments on a wide-range of topics including: human rights, economic, social and political issues, peacekeeping operations, international conferences and upcoming events. Every issue contains in-depth reviews and articles written by leading world figures, which provide an insightful look into the world today. The UN Chronicle also includes a review of current United Nations Security Council and General Assembly sessions.

World leaders have shown what they can achieve when they work together to tackle the most daunting challenges. In 2015, they agreed to the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the global climate change agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, laying out an ambitious agenda and timeline for change.

Afghanistan has endured conflict for the last 38 years. The Democratic Republic of the Congo—for 20 years. Somalia—17. Iraq and the Sudan—13. Syria—for 5 years. These and many other protracted conflicts the world over consume 80 per cent of humanitarian financing, displace families for decades, generate new humanitarian appeals year on year and devour dollars. The economic cost of conflict was estimated to account for 13 per cent of the global economy in 2014. While an earthquake, tsunami, cyclone, flood or volcanic eruption could happen at any time, conflict is a man-made phenomenon that stands as an obstacle to meeting humanitarian needs, and we can do something about it.

Sixty million people around the world have been forced to flee their homes because of war, persecution and terrible human rights violations. This number is astonishing, isn’t it? As members of a global society with access to endless streams of media, it is easy to hear numbers and figures and to get caught up in the politics of it all. It’s easy to lose sight of the fact that each number represents a living, breathing, feeling human soul. That’s just it, though. We are talking about people. Innocent people. Just like you. Just like me. I was once one of these numbers, one of the nameless, faceless statistics that was forced to flee. Can you imagine what that’s like, what it’s like to be forced to flee your home, to have your village decimated, to wholly lose life as you know it? Please do try.

Humanitarian action has never reached so many people in so many places. Around the world, more actors than ever are involved in delivering life-saving assistance and protection to people in need: from Governments, which bear the primary responsibility for providing assistance to their people, to international and national organizations and networks, to businesses and private foundations.

In 2015, the global refugee crisis reached Europe. Over 1 million refugees and migrants arrived on its southern shores, most of them from war-torn places such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. The trend continued in 2016, with more than 171,000 arrivals during the first three months. This, however, is just the tip of the iceberg. Worldwide, more than 60 million people have been displaced by war, persecution or human rights abuses. Some 86 per cent of them live in developing countries, mostly those neighbouring conflict zones.

The cat is out of the bag—we are running out of money to pay for the world’s humanitarian needs. Fortunately, it is now in front of us, refusing to be ignored. For that we have United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to thank, as it was his decision to appoint the High-Level Panel on Humanitarian Financing, tasked with finding solutions to the challenge of funding humanitarian action.

On the morning of 25 April 2015, Nepal shook with a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. When the dust settled, thousands of people had died and buildings had come crumbling down. It was a Saturday, a day off in Nepal, which means that the offices and schools that had collapsed were closed. If it had been any other day, the death toll could have been much higher. A little more than two weeks later, on 12 May, a 7.3 magnitude aftershock struck, resulting in more casualties and destruction.

Haunting are the images of Tacloban, Philippines, in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan, or indeed of any human settlement ravaged by calamity. In the course of a day, neighbourhoods become wastelands. Homes are reduced to scraps. Essential for saving lives and easing the suffering of affected populations, the task of sheltering millions of people made suddenly homeless and vulnerable can seem daunting to even the most hopeful responder.

As the cost of information and communications technologies continues on its downward trajectory, we have increasingly seen a digital revolution that spurs change from within local populations to international agencies. The world is further connecting as masses go online to seek information and utilize tools to amplify their voices. Humanitarian organizations respond to the new opportunities afforded by the Internet and other digital technologies to navigate challenges and exploit innovative solutions amid this dynamic landscape. This was no more evident than when Typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines in 2013. The event offers a unique perspective on a situation in which non-governmental organizations (NGOs) utilized new forms of engagement to improve humanitarian response through collaboration with Volunteer and Technical Communities (V&TCs).

Fifteen years ago, when I joined the humanitarian sector, I believed that article 6 of the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief regulated field practice. It stated “we shall attempt to build disaster response on local capacities… Where possible, we will work through local NGHAs as partners in planning and implementation…”. Complementarity with local actors was subsequently emphasized in the 1996 Sphere Project, the 2003 Good Humanitarian Donorship principles, and the 2007 Principles of Partnership.

Is the humanitarian aid system doing the right things? And, is it doing the right things right? Can data help increase the effectiveness of humanitarian aid? On the face of it, these questions seem redundant. One would assume that improved data would surely result in more effective humanitarian aid delivery. The answer, however, is “maybe” at best: more data does not always translate into better humanitarian action or quality of care.

Our rapidly globalizing and urbanizing world presents a host of complex challenges for humanity and the living environment. These developments pose threats to, as well as opportunities for, ongoing and future humanitarian action. Rather than be limited by unprecedented changes in the global South, for example, where cities are growing at record rates, humanitarian action should, in the future, be at the forefront of new approaches to reimagining and redesigning just and sustainable human settlements.